Flip-flop retailer gets feet on the ground in Chicago area

(Crain's) — Chicago may not be flip-flop friendly 365 days a year, but that isn't stopping Brian Curin from rolling out several stores here that sell the casual footwear.

Mr. Curin, 38, is president of Flip Flop Shops, a Kennesaw, Ga.-based retailer that sells flip-flops and other specialty footwear and is expanding into the Chicago market. The chain plans to open more than 10 stores here over the next five years.

“We launched the concept in 2008 in the worst economy arguably in the history of North America and not only started a new business, but created an entirely new category within the retail world,” said Mr. Curin, who grew up in nearby Lake Geneva, Wis., and graduated from Columbia College Chicago.

Since the company began franchising four years ago, it's grown to more than 160 stores — 60 of which are already open — in the United States, Canada, Guam and the Caribbean. The retailer's first Illinois location, a 700-square-foot store in the Orland Square mall in south suburban Orland Park, opened last week.

“We've had a huge amount of interest,” said Rob Weaver, co-owner of the store. “Sales have been actually better than what I anticipated, so so far, so good.”

The obvious question: How will a retailer that specializes in warm-weather footwear survive Chicago's subzero winters?

“During the fall holiday season, when the weather is bad, that's when most of us . . . plan trips. Before Flip Flop Shops came along, it was hard to find the styles and the brands and we're the only concept that does this 365,” Mr. Curin said. The stores also sell “warm and fuzzy” products, such as slippers and boots, in the cold months.

Having a small, focused assortment of footwear and a franchise model in which local operators know the individual markets works to the retailer's advantage, says Neil Stern, a senior partner at Chicago retail consultancy McMillian Doolittle LLP.

“Since they are not technically 'all' flip-flops, they can play seasonality to deal with the winter,” Mr. Stern said in an email. “And, in more affluent locations, you do have a vacation clientele.”

Mr. Weaver said he and partner Garett Grant plan to open a second store in the area within the next six to 12 months, eyeing locations like Westfield Old Orchard in Skokie and Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg.

Eventually, they plan to bring Flip Flop Shops to Michigan Avenue — possibly Water Tower Place — as well as less conventional locations like Navy Pier, a hotspot for tourists.

The retailer also is looking to open stores in major airports across the country, including O'Hare International Airport, over the next 12 to 24 months, though no talks have taken place in Chicago, said Mr. Curin, who helped build Cold Stone Creamery's franchise system.

“We often compare what we're doing with Flip Flop Shops to what Sunglass Hut did two decades ago or what Hat World and LIDS did almost 10 years ago,” he said.

Sales growth at Flip Flop stores open for at least a year has been in the double digits since 2008, he said.

“When so many retailers were closing locations, it allowed us as a new concept to go into some of the top malls and other real estate opportunities throughout the world and take spaces down that maybe we couldn't have if the market was really strong back then,” he said.